Faith of the Son of God
Part One
The Same Faith
Part One
The Same Faith
“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” (Galatians 2:20).
Lacking a better analogy, the Bible is like a flaky pastry that has many layers. We always start with the top layer, which in, “The faith of the Son of God” may be more particularly understood through saying: Faith in the Son of God. That however, is not the application I am focusing on.
Neither would I be able to say how many "layers down"(maybe just the second?) my application is. In any case, what I specifically have in mind should be more readily understood as saying: The same faith as the Son of God! In other words, the same type/nature of faith that Jesus had. (Of course should you personally not feel prepared to explore beyond that first layer, it is completely appropriate).
“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me." It is not this first part of the verse either that I expect to cover. (However, briefly:
“I am crucified with Christ" may be generally associated with Romans 6:3,4: 3Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? 4Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death.
While, "Nevertheless I live," is forthwith coincident with the latter element of Romans 6:4: That like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
Then the concept of,"Yet not I, but Christ liveth in me," is carried further in verses like Colossians 1:27: Christ in you, the hope of glory; and John 17:22,23: 22That they may be one, even as we are one: 23I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one.).
Equally, the latter aspect of Galatians 2:20 - "Who loved me, and gave himself for me" - is "another study for another time" (although its meaning is apparent!).
Again, it is this middle section of the verse - "And the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God" - that we are herein focusing upon; to the end, as suggested, of assimilating the type/nature of faith that Jesus had.
You may be involved with two disparate levels of thought about now. One: That such an idea is both presumptuous and distasteful; Two: Could it be possible and how fantastic would it be?!
Let me attempt to rebut the first (That such an idea is both presumptuous and distasteful).
As usual, it is my tendency to cite various scriptures:
"Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father." (John 14:12);
"Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ." (1 Cor. 11:1).
"Jesus said unto him, Follow me." (Mark 8:22; the words of Jesus - "Follow me" - are recorded 17 times in the Gospels!);
Jesus describes himself as "The son of man" more often than anything else; even as Hebrews 4:15 says, He "was in all points tempted like as we are," once more identifying him to the fullest extent with us! The implication seems clear enough that - apart from those abilities flowing through his incarnate sinless divinity - he possesed no operative potentials we do not share. I could extend this segment, but for the sake of remaining concise, will refrain.
The second proposed response (Could it be possible and how fantastic would it be?!) to assimilating the type/nature of faith that Jesus had, is obviously the one that I endorse and encourage, in Part Two...
Lacking a better analogy, the Bible is like a flaky pastry that has many layers. We always start with the top layer, which in, “The faith of the Son of God” may be more particularly understood through saying: Faith in the Son of God. That however, is not the application I am focusing on.
Neither would I be able to say how many "layers down"(maybe just the second?) my application is. In any case, what I specifically have in mind should be more readily understood as saying: The same faith as the Son of God! In other words, the same type/nature of faith that Jesus had. (Of course should you personally not feel prepared to explore beyond that first layer, it is completely appropriate).
“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me." It is not this first part of the verse either that I expect to cover. (However, briefly:
“I am crucified with Christ" may be generally associated with Romans 6:3,4: 3Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? 4Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death.
While, "Nevertheless I live," is forthwith coincident with the latter element of Romans 6:4: That like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
Then the concept of,"Yet not I, but Christ liveth in me," is carried further in verses like Colossians 1:27: Christ in you, the hope of glory; and John 17:22,23: 22That they may be one, even as we are one: 23I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one.).
Equally, the latter aspect of Galatians 2:20 - "Who loved me, and gave himself for me" - is "another study for another time" (although its meaning is apparent!).
Again, it is this middle section of the verse - "And the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God" - that we are herein focusing upon; to the end, as suggested, of assimilating the type/nature of faith that Jesus had.
You may be involved with two disparate levels of thought about now. One: That such an idea is both presumptuous and distasteful; Two: Could it be possible and how fantastic would it be?!
Let me attempt to rebut the first (That such an idea is both presumptuous and distasteful).
As usual, it is my tendency to cite various scriptures:
"Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father." (John 14:12);
"Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ." (1 Cor. 11:1).
"Jesus said unto him, Follow me." (Mark 8:22; the words of Jesus - "Follow me" - are recorded 17 times in the Gospels!);
Jesus describes himself as "The son of man" more often than anything else; even as Hebrews 4:15 says, He "was in all points tempted like as we are," once more identifying him to the fullest extent with us! The implication seems clear enough that - apart from those abilities flowing through his incarnate sinless divinity - he possesed no operative potentials we do not share. I could extend this segment, but for the sake of remaining concise, will refrain.
The second proposed response (Could it be possible and how fantastic would it be?!) to assimilating the type/nature of faith that Jesus had, is obviously the one that I endorse and encourage, in Part Two...
